New bow material maybe.

[bassman]

Wood can be made to be 3 times more dense,and stronger by boiling wood in sodium hydrogen,and sodium sulfate which removes lignen They heat the wood till the cell walls collapse. Then with pressure, and  heat it makes chemical bonds with  large numbers of hydrogen atoms ,and neighboring atoms in the nano fibers of cellulose making the wood much stronger.50 times the compression strength, and 20 times as stiff, and with a simple coat of paint no swelling. Might be suitable for making some excellent bows some day. MAYBE

[mmattockx]

Is it this article and academic paper you are referring to?

Article:  https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-018-01371-0

Paper:  https://www.nature.com/articles/nature25476

The process is not something that can be easily done at home (boiling large pieces of wood several times over in toxic chemicals and then compressing it at 700+psi and 100C for a day is not DIY friendly), but the resulting properties might make for a really great belly lam material if someone starts making archery suitable sizes. I'm sure the harder core primitive guys will not be happy with it, though.

If anyone wants the full paper without paying the ransom for it PM me with your email address and I can send it to you.


Mark

[PatM]

Sounds promising perhaps as a lam material.  In solid form you'd probably run into the same problems solid glass bows have.

 Certainly hard to be too interested from the perspective of why we use wood in the first place.

[bassman]

 Interesting article any how.  I am talking just buying it.Not making it.  I would try some in the event that it would become available. It is still wood.

[mmattockx]

Interesting article any how.  I am talking just buying it.Not making it.  I would try some in the event that it would become available. It is still wood.

It is an interesting article, with lots of promise in a number of areas more important than archery. I chased the article down because I was wondering about doing it on a small scale at home for belly lams, but that is not practical. I would also try some if it becomes available, it should make great belly wood. I agree it is wood, but some prefer their primitive archery much more primitive than industrially processed wood.


Mark

[willie]

forgewood arrows were made with a hydraulic press out  of hemlock?  I think the densities were about tripled.   5/16 spine @ 100#
google      bill sweetland story

[bassman]

I do too Mark. All my bows  are made with an ax, draw knife, a rasp, and a series of sand paper as of late.  I use all kinds of wood. Make my share of failures also.The next guy would say that he uses nothing but stone tools.Then their are guys who use power tools. I won't judge. What ever turns your crank. The end result is what counts. No one really knows how you make your bows, and many probably don't care. I know I don't.

[Digital Caveman]

I don't think this is actually wood anymore.  You're rebuilding the chemical compositions so far that you've essentially got an entirely new material.  Not everything made from wood is wooden.  My university has found a way to make jet fuel out of wood; this stuff sounds about as primitive.  It would probably be great for bellies, but so is fg.  I like making bows from wood because it's easier to do at home with hand tools, because wood is abundant, and because the grain looks amazing.  this stuff sounds too complicated. 

I wonder, could you heat temper whole boards all the way through by baking them?  That would be an enhanced natural wooden lam.

[mmattockx]

I wonder, could you heat temper whole boards all the way through by baking them?  That would be an enhanced natural wooden lam.

People have mentioned oven heating belly lams but I have not seen anyone actually do it. I would try but I don't have an oven that will accommodate anything that long. For a lam bow I think that would be a significant improvement if using white wood that is suspect in compression.


Mark

[PatM]

I wonder, could you heat temper whole boards all the way through by baking them?  That would be an enhanced natural wooden lam.

 Thermally modified wood in board form is well known.

 Quite a few guys have baked belly lams or heat treated a belly and then added a separate backing.

[mmattockx]

Quite a few guys have baked belly lams or heat treated a belly and then added a separate backing.

Pat, can you point to any info/websites/threads that detail some of the oven baking attempts?


Mark

[DC]

I'm seriously planning an oven. Our kitchen oven is about 3" too small. I do heat treat my belly lams on both sides. It's the closest I can get for now. I think it helps.

[bownarra]

 that would be a significant improvement if using white wood that is suspect in compression.


Mark
[/quote]

Or just trap the back. Woods aren'[t suspect in compression its just that their resistance to stretch is greater than their resistance to being compressed. Fat child, skinny child on a see-saw....the see-saw still works but the fatty needs to go running some more